National cuisine of Mexico recipes. Mexican cuisine. How to make real fajitas

Mexican cuisine is characterized by originality, originality and uniqueness of dishes. Here they combine the incongruous - sweet and spicy - and get delicious dishes that are considered the pinnacle of culinary art.

The cuisine of Mexico has a rich history and consists of adapting the best traditions of African, Caribbean and South American cuisines to suit the hot temperament of the Mexican people.

A feature of Mexican cuisine can be called temperament: dishes are distinguished by both sharpness and spice.

Another characteristic feature is Mexican dining etiquette. He instructs you to take national dishes with your hands.

History and traditions of Mexican cuisine

A world-famous cuisine, recognized and revered throughout the globe, literally arose from pasture. Cacti, snakes, lizards and insects - that’s what stood at the origins.

The characteristics and traditions of the Aztecs roaming the desert changed only slightly and were supplemented with the beginning of sedentary life on the shores of Lake Texcoco. Having erected the city of Tenochtitlan, the Aztecs began to comprehend agriculture: they grew sweet peppers, amaranth, corn, potatoes, pumpkins, and legumes. The meat diet, previously consisting of everything that flies and crawls, began to be supplemented with meat from farmed livestock. But boiled and baked crawling creatures even now often become part of the menu of indigenous Mexicans.

Grilling has become the favorite method of cooking meat. This delicacy is usually served with a side dish of beans, beans, salsa or guacamole.

“Barbarians” surprised even the most avid gourmets of that time - the Spaniards - with their skillful culinary combinations. A characteristic feature of the cuisine, both then and now, is the skillful combination of traditional national products: beans, potatoes, corn, avocado, pumpkin, beans - with spices.

List of national products

Mexican cuisine is unthinkable without:

• corn tortilla, which can be served as a separate dish or as a component of an appetizer;
• Tabasco sauce – spiciness is one of the most important “tricks” of Mexican cuisine;
• nachos - corn chips eaten as a snack with sauces.

Now it’s worth talking in more detail about corn, which in Mexico is considered not only the queen of the fields, but also the mistress of the culinary world. Tortillas, nachos, burritos, enchiladas, chimichangas and even desserts are prepared on its basis. It is customary to add it as an ingredient to many traditional dishes.

Another must-have product: hot peppers. It is not only used for sauces, but also added to salads and served with meat and fish.

Did you know? The fashion for drinking tequila with salt and lime was invented purely for tourists! The Mexicans themselves frankly do not understand how anything can spoil the extraordinary taste of their traditional agave vodka.

Restaurants and cafes serving Mexican cuisine

Almost at every point globe You can try dishes that are prepared based on the characteristics of Mexican cuisine. Of course, they are slightly adapted, but they still contain notes of burning Mexican passion.

If you want to taste a whole taste symphony of the most popular dishes of Mexico, buy a ticket to the sultry sandy country and immediately head to the Don Chon restaurant. There you can taste dishes prepared according to ancient recipes preserved from antiquity. Larvae of ants and caterpillars, fried iguana, baked armadillo lizard and other most popular dishes of indigenous Mexicans are what awaits visitors to the restaurant.

Recipes of the most popular dishes

Many recipes used in our time have reached us in their original form. What can I say - even the cooking method remains the same: for example, it is still recommended to grind spices in a mortar.

Burrito - a traditional Mexican dish

If your trip to Mexico is postponed, prepare a dish that meets the characteristics and traditions of this country yourself.

For 5 servings you will need:

• 5 tortillas (corn flour cakes);
• 3 small chicken breasts;
• 2 tomatoes;
• fresh cucumber;
• sweet pepper;
• onion head;
• sauce (mayonnaise is possible);
• spices and herbs.

Making a burrito involves following a sequence of elementary steps:

1. Boil or grill the chicken meat, then separate it into fibers. Cutting into small pieces and frying is allowed. Spices, which may include chili pepper, are added at the stage of cooking the meat.
2. Cut onion, pepper, cucumber into small slices. We perform similar actions with tomatoes, but it is recommended to remove the skin first.
3. Grind the cheese, preferably hard varieties, with a coarse grater.
4. Mix the ingredients, sprinkling with spices and spices. If desired, you can supplement the composition with hot pepper.
5. Place the filling into the tortillas, spreading the sauce on top. Having formed a traditional “pocket”, put it in the oven for 10 minutes.

Serve the burrito warm.

How to make tacos at home

A taco is a type of “stuffed bread.” It is a flatbread wrapped in a tube, stuffed with meat, cheese, sauce, herbs and vegetables.

For 8 servings:

• 8 corn tortillas;
• 300 g meat;
• sweet pepper;
• bulb;
• tomato;
• a bunch of parsley;
• olive oil;
• hot Tabasco sauce;
• wine vinegar, chili powder, sugar, salt and sugar.

Let's get started:

1. Chopped onion, marinate in vinegar with herbs, ground pepper, sugar and salt.
2. Remove the skin from the tomatoes and peppers and cut the fruits into small cubes.
3. After mincing the meat, fry it in olive oil.
4. After 5 minutes, stir in chopped vegetables (pepper and tomato), salt, chili and a couple of tablespoons of water.
5. Simmer until the liquids evaporate.
6. Form the taco: place the cooled minced meat, onion and a little Tabasco sauce on the tortilla.

Fold the flatbread in half and serve.

Spicy Mexican vegetables

Pumpkin, of course, cannot be compared with corn in popularity, however, it is also a highly revered ingredient in Mexico.

To prepare a spicy Mexican vegetable stew you will need:

• pumpkin – 500 g;
• 2 carrots, onions, sweet peppers, potatoes, garlic cloves;
• tomatoes in own juice– 400 g;
• beans - 400 g jar;
• hot pepper;
• water – 400 ml;
• vegetable oil– 30 ml;
• parsley - a bunch.

Preparation:

1. All vegetables, except garlic and hot pepper, are cut into cubes of the same size. And chop the remaining garlic and pepper as finely as we can.

Advice! Handle hot peppers only with gloves. They are easy to remove, but it is difficult to wash your hands from pepper juice, which can lead to a burning sensation on the skin and mucous membranes (if it gets in there).

1. Heat the oil in a saucepan and fry the ingredients in it one by one (in the specified sequence): onions, carrots, sweet peppers, hot peppers, potatoes, pumpkin.
2. Fry for 10 minutes and add tomatoes in their own juice and garlic.
3. Another couple of minutes and add water. Boil for a quarter of an hour and add salt and spices.
4. Cook the mixture over low heat for 10 - 15 minutes and add the beans 5 minutes before turning off.

Spicy Mexican vegetables are ready.

Cooking nachos

When planning to make nachos, keep in mind that you will definitely need frying oil and corn flour - without them it is impossible to make chips. Of course, you can supplement corn flour with rice and wheat flour, but you cannot completely replace it.

Let's prepare:

• 2 cups corn flour;
• a glass of water;
• 400 ml oil;
• 5 g each of salt, cinnamon, black pepper and paprika.

Homemade nachos are prepared as follows:

1. After sifting the flour with spices, add warm water and leave for 20 minutes.
2. Knead the dough with your hands, coating them with vegetable oil - we get an elastic dough.
3. We form many balls the size of tennis balls. Roll out and fry for 30 seconds in a frying pan greased with a small amount of oil.
4. We divide each cake into 8 parts - giving preference to the triangle shape.
5. Place them in boiling deep fat and cook at approximately 180°C for 45 seconds. Ready-made nachos reveal themselves - they begin to float on the surface.
6. Place the appetizer with paper towels to remove excess oil.

Serve the finished nachos with sauce.

Salsa

Salsa is one of the traditional sauces of Mexican cuisine. It’s quite easy to prepare, so be sure to make it at home.

Let's take:

• 500 g tomato;
• 2 chili peppers;
• 5 cloves of garlic;
• 100 g onion;
• 40 ml lemon juice;
• 50 g cilantro;
• spices to taste.

Preparation:

1. Remove the skins from the tomatoes and chop the pulp to form a thick sauce. If you are too lazy to chop, puree it with a blender. We only take tomatoes that are ripe and as fleshy as possible.
2. Finely chop the onion and garlic and add to the tomatoes.
3. It's time for lemon juice - add it to the bowl with tomatoes. If you have lime, it is better to take it - the traditional recipe requires adding the juice of this particular fruit.
4. Peel the hot pepper from the seeds, chop and mix with other ingredients, adding spices. Puree.
5. Shred the cilantro.

Let the salsa sit in the refrigerator for about an hour before serving. And remember that salsa quickly oxidizes, so it must be stored in the cold for a short time.

Fajitas

To inexperienced cooks, traditional Mexican fajitas may seem similar to shawarma. But this is a misconception. Why? Find out in the following recipe.

First, let's find out what is needed:

• beef – 300 g;
• onion (red) – head;
• juice from 1 lime;
• bell pepper, tomato – 1 pc.;
• corn tortillas;
• vegetable oil, mustard and ground pepper to taste.

And here is the recipe itself:

1. Cut the beef into bars. Onion - in half rings.
2. Mix the meat and onion and pour in a mixture of lime juice, vegetable oil, mustard and ground pepper. Let it marinate for two hours.
3. Remove the skins from the tomatoes and peppers and cut into cubes.
4. Fry the marinated meat with onions in a frying pan. When ready, add vegetables to the meat.
5. Simmer for a couple of minutes until the vegetables reach al dente.
6. Before putting the filling into the flatbread, heat each one individually in a dry frying pan, coat it with oil and sprinkle with herbs.

Serve as a roll.

Corn baked in the oven

Mexican corn is distinguished by a subtle symbiosis of heat and spiciness, sweetness and saltiness.

For 5 ears of corn we take:

• 200 g sour cream;
• 2 tsp. balsamic vinegar;
• according to Art. l. chopped parsley and paprika;
• tsp cayenne pepper;
• 200 g hard cheese;
• clove of garlic;
• salt.

We start by baking the cobs at 180°C in the oven for 45 minutes. While the corn is cooling after baking on the grill, prepare the sauce: mix sour cream, vinegar, garlic, and salt. Now we will make a breading from finely grated cheese, as well as parsley, paprika, cayenne pepper and salt.

Coat the cooled cobs with the sauce with a brush, and then roll them in the dry mixture.

The corn is ready. After preparing the cobs this recipe, you get a tasty and juicy dish.

Mexican Lenten Tomato Soup

Another masterpiece of Mexican cuisine is aromatic Lenten soup with tomatoes.

Ingredients:

• tomatoes (canned, chunky) - can;
• beans (canned) - can;
• tomato juice – 400 ml;
• vegetable broth – 500 ml;
• corn - 5 tbsp. l.;
• garlic – 2 cloves;
• oil - tbsp. l.;
• chili pepper (hot, ground) – 1\2 tsp;
• greens, lemon, sugar, salt - to taste.

Step by step instructions:

1. Simmer the crushed garlic cloves in vegetable oil.
2. Next, add the tomatoes and bring to a boil. Taste and if there is too much acid, add sugar.
3. Add chili pepper, corn (fresh or frozen), tomato juice and vegetable broth.
4. Bring the mixture to a boil and simmer in a saucepan for 10 minutes.
5. Add the beans, washed from the juice, into the soup: boil again for 15 minutes and, after removing from the heat, let the soup brew.

When serving, you can add a little lemon juice to each serving. It is appropriate to serve the dish along with a crispy tortilla.

Classic Guacamole sauce

Guacamole is a traditional Mexican sauce made with avocado, lime juice and cilantro.

Let's take:

• 2 avocados;
• 1 lime;
• 20 g cilantro;
• salt.

Preparation:

1. Separate the avocado pulp from the peel and pit. To do this, cut the fruit into two parts, stick a knife into the bone and, turning it, remove it. Using a teaspoon, carefully extract the pulp.
2. Mash the pulp with a fork or puree.
3. Chop the cilantro with a knife.
4. To extract the maximum juice from the lime, before squeezing, knead it with your hands or by rolling it over the surface of the table. It is possible to replace lime with lemon, but in this case less juice will be required due to its greater richness.
5. Add the expressed juice to the pulp and herbs.

After stirring or, if desired, pureeing with a blender, the guacamole sauce will be completely ready.

Chicken quesadilla

Quesadilla is a Mexican dish consisting of a tortilla filled with meat and vegetables.

You will need:

• 600 g chicken meat;
• 4 tortillas;
• 2 bell peppers;
• 2 tomatoes;
• 400 g cheese;
• 2 cloves of garlic.

Spices other than salt:

• ground coriander;
• pepper;
• thyme.

Chicken quesadilla is prepared like this:

1. Sauté the onion and garlic cloves in oil until the onion is transparent.
2. Cut the meat into small cubes and add it to the root vegetables. Fry for 20 minutes.
3. During this time, you need to cut the tomatoes and peppers into cubes and grate the cheese.
4. We send the vegetables to the chicken and fry for no more than 5 minutes: they will give juice, and the whole quesadilla will turn out juicier. It's time to add spices.
5. Form the dish: place the corn tortilla in a frying pan with a small amount of oil. First we distribute the cheese over it, then the filling and again the cheese. We cover the products with the second, free side of the tortilla; to do this, distribute all the ingredients on one side of the tortilla.
6. Warm up the appetizer first on one side, then on the other.

For the enchilada, let's take:

• 5 tortillas;
• Cheddar cheese;
• 1\2 tbsp. boiled black beans;
• 50 ml oil;
• 400 ml canned diced tomatoes;
• 400 ml water;
• 75 g flour;
• about 300 g of chicken meat;
• bulb;
• 5 cloves of garlic;
• 50 g corn;
• tsp oregano and ground dry garlic;
• hot pepper.

In addition to the ingredients, you will also need about an hour of free time.

We perform the following steps:

1. Let's prepare the enchilada sauce. Heat 50 ml of oil and fry the flour in it. Stir in the tomatoes, add water, add chili pepper, garlic and oregano. Boil for 15 minutes until thick.
2. Let's start with the filling. Sauté the onion in oil. Add meat to it and fry until done. Add corn and hot pepper. Another 5 minutes and the filling is ready.
3. Putting the enchilada together. Coat the tortilla with sauce on both sides. We lay out a strip of beans and the finished filling, wrap the flatbread in a roll and place it in a baking dish.
4. Having laid out all the rolls, pour the rest of the sauce over them, sprinkle with grated cheese and put in the oven. Temperature – 200°C. After 30 minutes you can enjoy a divinely delicious dish.

Desserts in Mexican cuisine

Desserts of Mexican cuisine are a special subsection that deserves special attention.

Considering the ardent love of Mexicans for spicy foods, even in the preparation of desserts they cannot be avoided. The combination of sweet and spicy makes the sweets born from Mexican traditions unique and unforgettable.

One more characteristic feature, inherent in the desserts of Mexico, one should call the focus on national holidays. For example, Cajeta Quemada candies are made for the “Day of the Dead” and are “Sugar Skulls”. They are prepared on the basis of a varied selection of sweets, condensed milk and - who would have thought! - corn.

Another proof of the unusualness of Mexican desserts is Calabaza. No! Not sausage, but “Kalabasa” - a dessert made from canned pumpkin with ginger.

So we have completed a short excursion into the features and traditions of Mexican cuisine. Despite the voluminous material, not everything was covered and analyzed by us - Mexican cuisine is so multifaceted and extensive.

Mexico, figuratively speaking, can be called a hot, passionate and very temperamental country. National Mexican cuisine and recipes for its dishes, as part of the national culture of this state, can be characterized by the same epithets. Mexican cuisine is rightfully considered one of the most colorful, and has been popular all over the world for centuries.

Lovers of meat dishes, spicy and bright tastes really appreciate this cuisine. It invigorates, surprises and delights. Mexican food recipes deserve to be known more about them, so that every housewife has several of the most popular and delicious recipes precisely from this emotional and hot in every sense of the state.

Another advantage is that the products necessary for preparing Mexican dishes can be freely found on the shelves of our stores, and they are not expensive. The simplicity and at the same time sophistication of this kitchen is captivating.

I would also like to note the amazing consistency of Mexican cooks, because in almost every dish they have at least one of the ingredients such as corn, beans and the constant hot pepper.

We present to your attention several of the most popular Mexican cuisine recipes with photos.

All the dishes presented below use special flatbreads - tortillas. Therefore, it is quite logical that the approach to Mexico should begin with the preparation of these tortillas. They are used in so many Mexican dishes. In addition, they can be used instead of bread and are quite easy to prepare at home. But still there are some tricks.

Ingredients:

• wheat flour – 300 g;
• corn flour – 250 g;
• olive oil – 4 tbsp;
• purified water – 250 ml;
• salt – 2 tsp.

Cooking features:

1. If you don't have olive oil, you can use vegetable oil.
2. If you use cornmeal alone, your tortillas will crumble a lot. This is due to the fact that corn flour does not contain enough gluten. If you take just wheat, they will be too hard and unleavened. Therefore, the combination of these two varieties is an ideal solution.
3. When rolling out the cakes, if you wish, you can even out their edges using a plate or other round object. Or you can leave it with uneven edges. This will not affect the taste of the dish.

Preparation:

1. Dissolve salt in warm water. This will allow it to be distributed evenly throughout the dough.
2. Gradually pour water into the sifted flour. The dough will turn out quite stiff. If you feel like the dough is too hard, you can add a few more tablespoons of water.
3. Mix everything into the resulting mass with olive oil.
4. Divide the dough into 15 - 16 pieces of the same size, roll each into a ball. Cover them with gauze and let stand for about 20 minutes.
5. After the dough has rested, take a rolling pin and two sheets of parchment. Place each cake between parchment leaves and gently roll out with a rolling pin. The diameter of each cake should be about 15 cm.
6. Fry the flatbreads in a dry frying pan for less than a minute on each side.
7. After frying is finished, stack the cakes and cover them with a towel so they can rest. Bon appetit!

Step-by-step quesadilla recipe

To prepare Mexican quesadillas you will need two main ingredients - tortillas and hard cheese. As already noted, tortillas are flatbreads made from wheat and corn flour. Simply put, it's a type of pita bread, so it's perfectly acceptable to use it in place of traditional Mexican flatbreads.

A quesadilla consists of two tortillas with a spicy filling between them. Cheese in this dish is necessary as a binding ingredient. The ingredients can be varied, it all depends on your imagination.

Let's consider the classic version of the quesadilla recipe - meat.

Ingredients:

• tortilla – 4 pcs.;
• fresh minced meat – 300 g;
• boiled or pickled corn – 150 g;
• sweet bell pepper – 1 pc.;
• red hot pepper – 1 pc.;
• onion – 1 pc.;
• butter – 3 tbsp;
• vegetable oil – 3 tbsp;
• salt;
• spices.

Cooking features:

1. First, we need to clarify some points regarding the ingredients.
2. You can use absolutely any meat at your discretion. A good option it will be if you take beef and pork in equal parts. This will give additional juiciness to our dish. You can also make quesadillas with chicken and even seafood.
3. Instead of corn, you can use boiled or pickled beans, or combine these two flavors.
4. Select spices at your discretion. If you are comfortable with spicy dishes, you can also add freshly ground black pepper. In addition, it is recommended to use cumin, nutmeg, and coriander.

Preparation:

Prepare the minced meat.

1. Peel the onion and fry in vegetable oil until soft.
2. Add the chopped meat to the onion and fry for about 5 minutes, stirring constantly.
3. Remove seeds from hot and sweet peppers and cut into squares. Hot peppers can be cut slightly smaller than sweet peppers.
4. Add beans or corn and chopped peppers to the minced meat.
5. Salt and add spices to taste.
6. Mix everything well and simmer under the lid for another 15 minutes.
7. Cover the minced meat and set it aside. It is important to ensure that the filling does not cool down.

Preparing the quesadilla:

1. Grate hard cheese on a coarse grater.
2. Place a teaspoon of butter in a heated frying pan. The secret to a crispy quesadilla is using minimal oil.
3. When the oil is hot enough, place the flatbread in the pan.
4. Sprinkle cheese over the entire surface of the tortilla and immediately spread the filling onto half the area of ​​the tortilla. For 1 tortilla you should need about a glass of prepared filling. You shouldn't take more, otherwise it will simply fall apart.
5. After 1 - 2 minutes, when the cheese begins to melt, carefully cover the minced meat with the second part of the flatbread with a spatula. Press lightly with a spatula and immediately remove from heat.

And here it is - a fragrant, hot, nutritious quesadilla is ready. Most likely, you have already prepared something similar in your kitchen. But they didn’t even know that you were preparing the national dish of Mexico – quesadilla. Bon appetit!

Mexican taco recipe

The most common dish in Mexico can be called tacos. This dish can be prepared at home without any problems. The taco filling can be either meat or vegetable, or a combination of your choice. We offer a recipe for tacos with chicken meat filling. To prepare this dish, we will again need tortillas - special Mexican flatbreads.

Ingredients:

• taco shells – 3 pcs.;
• chicken fillet – 300 g;
• tomatoes – 2 pcs.;
• bell pepper – ½ piece;
• hot pepper – 1 pc.;
• sharp hard cheese – 90 g;
• garlic – 3 cloves;
• onion – 1 head;
• taco spices;
• greens to taste.

Cooking features:

1. Taco shells are already prepared tortillas, folded in half, but not all the way.
2. The tortillas for tacos must be warm. If you don’t have such flatbreads, you can safely use pita bread.
3. The true taste of a taco is very spicy. If you are not a particular fan of spicy foods, adjust the heat to taste.

Preparation:

1. We chop the chicken meat with a knife, or twist it in a meat grinder. We also chop onions, garlic, sweet and hot peppers, tomatoes and herbs. We cut everything quite finely.
2. Three cheeses on a coarse grater.
3. Lightly fry the minced chicken in vegetable oil.
4. Add the onion and 1/3 of the total garlic. Season with spices and simmer for 5 minutes.
5. We put our tomatoes - ½ of the total quantity and peppers - sweet and hot into the minced mixture. Simmer for 10 minutes.
6. Add the remaining tomatoes, garlic and herbs to the almost finished minced meat. And immediately remove the frying pan from the heat.
7. We form the tacos: put the filling in a taco shell, like in an envelope, and sprinkle grated cheese on top. Bon appetit!

How to make real fajitas

I would like to dwell on one more dish of Mexican cuisine, which amazes with its taste qualities, and simplicity. These are very famous in Mexico - fajitas. Given below step by step recipe closest to the original of this dish in its homeland. However, you can always modify it by replacing some ingredients with others.

Ingredients:

• tortilla – 4 pcs.;
• beef tenderloin – 400 g;
• tomatoes – 3 pcs.;
• sweet bell pepper different colors– 2 pcs.;
• hot chili pepper – 1 pod;
• purple onion – 1 head;
• garlic – 4 cloves;
• hard cheese – 100 g;
• juice of half a lemon or lime;
• olive oil – 4 tbsp;
• spices;
• green.

To submit:

tequila – 30 ml.

Cooking features:

1. The meat for this dish requires marinating. It is best to do this overnight or at least for 3 hours by soaking it in grape wine or any marinade you prefer.
2. Tequila is indicated in the recipe for the purpose of aesthetic presentation of the dish. The original serving is done in a frying pan. In front of the guests, tequila is poured into a frying pan with meat and set on fire. It looks impressive.
3. It is better to take salty varieties of cheese, such as Parmesan or salted cheddar.
4. In this case, cilantro or parsley, basil and oregano will go well with the dish.

Preparation:

1. We clean the meat from film and veins, cut into thin strips. This condition is mandatory.
2. Let's start preparing the vegetables: chop the onion and bell pepper into fairly large strips. We also cut the tomatoes into large pieces of arbitrary shape. Chop the garlic and chili pepper very finely. If you do not want the taste of the dish to be too aggressive, then the chili pepper must first be cleared of seeds.
3. In two different frying pans over high heat, fry the meat and vegetables separately. Tomatoes should be added to vegetables 2 - 3 minutes before the end of frying.
4. Remove the pans from the heat. Add chopped garlic and lime or lemon juice to the vegetables.
5. Mix the contents of the pans, season with spices to taste and put on the fire for another 5 - 7 minutes.

Fajitas are served directly in the container in which they were prepared, with tortillas, hot sauces such as chili or guacamole, sour cream and grated cheese. The guest must take a tortilla, choose the filling, season the tortilla with their own sauces and sprinkle with cheese. Use with hot tequila. Bon appetit!

Mexican enchiladas recipe

Enchiladas are traditional meat patties baked in the oven. The tenderness and aroma of the tortilla combined with the spicy filling will not leave you indifferent. Enchiladas, like many other Mexican dishes, leave a very pleasant aftertaste. Once you try to make this dish once, you will definitely not stop there.

Ingredients:

• tortilla – 3 pcs.;
• chicken fillet – 350 g;
• hard cheese – 200 g;
• tomatoes – 2 pcs.;
• onion – 1 pc.;
• garlic – 4 cloves;
• chicken broth – 250 g;
• olive or vegetable oil for frying;
• butter – 1 tbsp;
• hot chili ketchup – 5 tbsp. or ½ pod of hot chili pepper;
• salt and spices to taste;
• greens for decoration.

Preparation:

1. Boil chicken fillet in lightly salted water. Cool and cut into small cubes.
2. If you use chili peppers, remove the seeds.
3. Chop the onion into quarters of rings, and chop the garlic as finely as possible.
4. On a heated mixture of vegetable and butter fry the onion until soft.
5. Add the chopped meat, season with spices and continue frying for about 5 - 7 minutes.
6. Mix ketchup and broth until smooth and pour this mixture over the minced meat.
7. Add garlic and simmer the whole mass for about 10 minutes.
8. Strain the finished filling and place it in a colander to remove excess moisture. We use the resulting sauce in further preparation.
9. Grate the cheese on a coarse grater.
10. Place the filling on one edge of the flatbread, sprinkle cheese on top and wrap it in a roll.
11. On a baking sheet lined with foil, pour a small amount of tomato sauce, which we have left after straining the minced meat. Place enchiladas rolls on top in even rows. Pour the remaining sauce over it and sprinkle the remaining grated cheese on top. Cover the baking sheet with another piece of foil on top, as if sealing the baking sheet.
12. Place the dish in the preheated oven for 25 minutes. The temperature should be within 180 °C. After 15 minutes, remove the top layer of foil and continue baking until the cheese is browned.
13. Place the dish on serving plates and decorate with herbs. Bon appetit!

Mexican cuisine or national cuisine of Mexico- this is not just a set of culinary recipes, these are the most ancient customs and traditions of the Aztecs, carried down to the present day in almost unchanged form. In addition, it is a global cultural heritage that has been recognized by UNESCO.

The surprising thing is that throughout the history of Mexican cuisine, it has undergone virtually no changes. Even the ancient utensils that were used in the cooking process have been preserved. Therefore, do not be surprised if, when you go to Mexico, you see how spices are ground in stone mortars to prepare this or that sauce.

The peculiarity of Mexican cuisine is, first of all, predetermined by its geographical location and climatic conditions, thanks to which the variety of fruits and vegetables in this country is simply amazing! In general, we can distinguish three main products that are most often used in cooking. These are corn, beans, and chili peppers.

Corn is a central staple in Mexican cuisine. They use it in all possible forms. For example, flour is made from it, which is the basis for tortillas or corn tortillas. This product, in turn, has become one of the main components in the preparation of such traditional dishes:

• a burrito is a meat pie, or rather meat filling with beans, rice, tomatoes and cheese, which is wrapped in a corn tortilla;
• enchilada - an envelope of corn tortilla stuffed with chicken or other meat and beans, topped with cheese sauce;
• Chimichangas are tortilla tubes filled with chicken or beef, tomatoes and cheese, fried in large quantities oils;
• huevos - scrambled eggs baked on corn tortillas.

Also, instead of bread, tortillas are served with salad and all kinds of sauces.

It is believed that Mexican national dishes are invariably spicy. Some even believe that it is almost impossible to eat such food. But this is not entirely true... As a rule, the sauces prepared for the dish are spicy, for example, the famous “Salsa”. The main courses themselves can be neutral. For example, prepared fish or meat can be eaten without fear by those who are not used to spicy food. The spiciness of sauces can be adjusted to your taste.

As for the variety of dishes of traditional Mexican cuisine, it is not in doubt! Among the national recipes you will find appetizers, first courses (soups), main second courses, salads, sauces, and desserts. Although, of course, the food culture of Mexico is completely different from the Slavic culture!

Of the soups in Mexican cuisine, the most famous is the so-called tortilla soup. He represents chicken broth, to which fried garlic and onions, tomatoes, cilantro, cumin, black pepper, chili pepper, and jalapeno pepper are added. The soup is served by adding fried tortillas and a little grated cheese. It turns out quite spicy.

Fajita is best known as a second course. These are grilled meats, seafood and vegetables that are wrapped in a tartilla. This dish is similar to a burrito, but unlike fajita, the corn tortilla is not stuffed, but is served separately. This way, everyone can choose the filling to their taste. As for the side dish, boiled rice or beans are served with the main dish.

A famous dessert of traditional Mexican cuisine is called Calabaza. It consists of ginger and pumpkin, which are preserved with cane sugar. Also, just fresh fruit can serve as dessert.

And to top it all off, we can’t help but mention tequila, a strong alcoholic drink made from blue guava. She has become a real symbol of the country!

The best way to get acquainted with the national cuisine of Mexico is by traveling to this wonderful country or visiting a restaurant (cafe) traditional cuisine. However, don't think that you can't cook Mexican food at home. It's not that difficult! Just follow the recipes with photos that are given on this site and then you will certainly succeed!

When talking about Mexican cuisine, the first thing that comes to mind is corn, which is used here as the basis of everything. flour products, a source of starch, oil, and also as a universal side dish - corn porridge. The main and, of course, the most popular Mexican dish in the world is tortillas, which are dry corn tortillas in which anything is wrapped: chopped meat, vegetables, fruits, herbs, etc. Variations on the theme of tortillas are tachos, which involve the use of legumes and chili peppers as a filling, as well as quesadillos, which are based on meat or cheese.

Mexican vegetables deserve special attention, they are considered one of the best in the world, thanks to the hot local sun. Juicy tomatoes are used here in almost any Mexican recipe, which is reflected in the photos of local dishes, which are characterized by a bright red color scheme. As for chili peppers, this is a feature of Mexican cuisine, which gives it an extraordinary spiciness that is not typical for European or Oriental cooking. One of the most popular Mexican sauces, Tabasco, is made from hot peppers.

Best Recipes Mexican cuisine always uses a lot of herbs and spices. The most typical in this regard are coriander, parsley, oregano, cumin, onion, garlic, peppercorns, anise and cinnamon. The abundance of herbs and seasonings explains the rich, rich taste of any dish. The sauces here are also prepared especially concentrated, with minimal addition of water. Among vegetables, in addition to tomatoes and peppers, spinach, carrots, cauliflower, broccoli, as well as such curiosities as Jerusalem artichoke and vegetable bananas. Among fruits, Mexicans prefer avocados, bananas, pears, guava and papaya.

Mexican recipes, expanded step by step photos The cooking process presented on the KitchenMag website will become useful culinary techniques for both experienced and novice cooks.

1. Pico de Gayo dish

Ingredients needed to prepare this characteristic Mexican cuisine sauce (more like a salad), a few, but they are all important. Spiced tomatoes and onions form the base of a popular Mexican sauce that can be served with wheat or corn tortillas with a variety of fillings. Fresh tomatoes, aromatic garlic and cilantro make the seasoning healthy and surprisingly tasty. In its own way it is a variety Mexican salsa sauce.

Pico de Gayo can be served with different dishes, but it goes especially harmoniously with grilled meat, which includes kebabs and steaks. The seasoning is also good as a light snack on its own.

This one is being prepared sauce So:
Tomatoes and onions need to be cut into small cubes of about 0.5 cm, add finely chopped garlic and hot pepper without seeds to them, chop the cilantro and combine with the rest of the ingredients, squeeze out the juice of one lemon, pepper and salt the dish, and then mix everything thoroughly . Pico de Gayo ready to eat. Bon appetit!

Lovers healthy eating will be able to evaluate beneficial properties salad sauce, since it is prepared without heat treatment with complete preservation of all vitamins in the products.

2. Guacamole recipe

Guacamole sauce in Mexico it is used as often as mayonnaise in European countries, being the main component for many dishes. IN classic guacamole includes avocado, lime or lemon, which explains its rare use in Russia, since avocados are quite expensive here. Mexican guacamole has a calorie content significantly lower than our respected mayonnaise, which affects its unconditional health benefits. Guacamole ingredients plant origin allows it to be consumed by people observing fasting.

Making guacamole consists of the following steps:
Cut the avocado and separate the seeds from the pulp, and use a spoon to release the pulp from the skin. To prevent the pulp from becoming dark, you should immediately sprinkle it with lime juice and then grind it in a blender to a puree consistency. Squeeze lemon or lime juice into the resulting mass, add ground black pepper, salt, a couple of tablespoons of sour cream and three tablespoons of olive oil to taste and mix again in a blender until smooth. Your guacamole ready!
It harmonizes perfectly with tomatoes, all types of meat, toppings for shawarma, pita bread and many other dishes.

3. Burrito recipe with beef and cheese sauce

Burrito. Mexican cuisine

Burrito- This is a meat dish, very tasty and nutritious. Can cook chicken burrito, and we will tell you how it is made with beef. To prepare the dish you will need the following products:

200 g beef, 100 g each rice and beans, mexican tortilla, two tomatoes and chili peppers, a head of red onion, 100 g cheddar cheese, lemon juice, olive oil, salt, ground black pepper, parsley, 100 ml each of cream and white wine and onions.
You need to boil the rice until tender and drain in a colander. For cooking sauce You should randomly chop the cheese and beat it in a blender with the addition of cream, white wine and a small amount of starch. The meat, previously cleaned, is cut into strips. Tomatoes with the stems cut out are first immersed in boiling water and then in low temperature water so that the peel can be removed. Tomatoes are cut into four slices, seeds and pulp are removed, after which they need to be cut into cubes, which are laid out in a deep plate. Chopped tomatoes are added chili pepper, onion and parsley, the resulting mass is salted and seasoned olive oil, lemon juice and stir.

A frying pan with vegetable oil is heated, into which beef, pepper and garlic are laid out. Don't forget to add salt, pepper and mix the ingredients. When the meat is almost ready, you need to add boiled rice, pre-mashed canned beans, cheese sauce and mix the resulting mass. The burrito filling is ready. Place it in the center tortillas and wrap it in a flatbread. Above Burrito greased with vegetable oil and fried on all sides. The dish is served on a warm plate, topped with cheese sauce and concasse tomatoes. Garnished with jalapeno pepper, onion and parsley. Eat for your health!

4. Fajitas

Mexican fajitas were considered food for cowboys, who had the right to take the leftover meat for their work after slaughtering cattle. From the word “faja”, meaning “strip”, the name of this meat dish, which all fans really like Mexican cuisine For cooking fajitas also needed tortillas. In establishments Mexican cuisine in St. Petersburg or Moscow you can try fajitas with chicken or beef. It turns out no less tasty pork fajitas.

To prepare the dish you will need:
half a kilo of meat, eight tortillas, three tomatoes, a large onion, 50 g of hard cheese, 1 avocado, lettuce and seasonings in the form of salt, ground pepper, cumin and paprika.

Cut the onion into small pieces and fry in a small amount of vegetable oil until transparent. Then add the meat, cut into small strips, to the onion and fry over high heat. Tomatoes, peeled and cut into small cubes, are added to the meat and onions. Salt and pepper the dish and add the planned seasonings. Bring the resulting mixture to a boil, then continue to simmer over low heat for about 10 minutes.

In parallel with cooking the meat, heat the tortillas in the oven at 180 degrees (about 10 minutes). Grate the cheese and chop the avocado with a knife. Alternatively, you can cook Avocado guacamole.
Fajitas are served as follows:
tortillas, meat filling with sauce, guacamole, grated cheese, lettuce leaves - all separately. At the table, everyone wraps their own ingredients in tortillas.

5. Quesadia recipe

Word " quesadia" or " quesadilla" literally means " cheese tortilla" The dish consists of two Mexican tortillas with different fillings, an essential ingredient of which is cheese. Tortillas fried in boiling oil, which melts the cheese inside and securely connects the two tortillas to each other. Alternatively, fold one corn tortilla in half. Most popular among tourists and lovers of Mexican dishes chicken quesadilla, mushroom quesadilla, minced meat quesadilla. Instead of classic tortillas, lavash or pita bread is often used in Russia.

For the filling you can use any type of meat, vegetables, mushrooms and cheese. To the table quesadia served cut into four pieces with spicy sauces such as salsa or sour cream. A light vegetable salad goes well with this dish.

Classic quesadia recipe looks like this:
The tortilla is fried in a hot frying pan for half a minute, then it is filled with grated cheese mixed with finely chopped onions, pre-fried meat of any kind, sour cream and chili pepper, and covered with a second tortilla. The tortilla is fried on both sides for two minutes (one minute on each side). During this time, the cheese inside should melt; the more cheese, the stronger the tortillas will be connected. The dish can be cut into pieces of any size. Bon appetit!

6. Ceviche recipe

There are many options for preparing this wonderful Mexican dish, the obligatory ingredients of which are seafood. The main feature of ceviche is raw fish and shrimp marinated in lemon juice. Can cook salmon ceviche and shrimp ceviche. Many varieties of red and white fish mixed with other seafood are suitable for this dish. We'll tell you how cook ceviche from white fish and shrimp.

We will need the following components:
approximately 800 g fillet of any white fish without bones;
300-350 g shrimp;
half each green and red sweet pepper, as well as half a hot pepper;
a large onion, preferably red;
lemon;
salt, coriander, a little sugar, ground pepper.

We thoroughly wash the fish and cut it into small pieces. We defrost frozen fish in the refrigerator; it is not recommended to do this using a microwave. To the fish add shrimp, boiled until half cooked, and onion, cut into half rings and soaked a little in salted water. Finely chop the pepper and coriander, removing all the grains, and add to the dish. Season the resulting mass with salt, ground pepper, lemon juice and sugar, which will help make the taste of the dish less sour and spicy. Leave it in the refrigerator for half an hour, then seafood ceviche Can be served with white wine. Bon appetit!

7. Zopa Azteca

Mexican cuisine widely uses all kinds of peppers, known to the local population since ancient times. Sopa Azteca fully meets the ideas of foreigners about spicy, juicy and unusual dishes from distant exotic countries. But you can cook it in our usual conditions in order to feel the tart national flavor of the new food in your kitchen. Recipe for this healthy Mexican vegetarian soup uncomplicated. To prepare it, you need to take a quarter of an avocado, two onions, three fresh tomatoes, one sweet bell pepper, three canned tomatoes, two pickled jalapeno peppers, vegetable oil, salt and ground pepper.

Coarsely chop the onion and bell pepper, divide the tomatoes into four parts. Mash the canned tomatoes, finely chop the jalapeno peppers, removing the seeds. Simmer all the resulting ingredients for 20 minutes in vegetable oil, adding salt and ground pepper at the end. Grind the resulting mass in a blender to a puree.
Place avocado slices in each serving and pour ready dish on plates. The soup is good served with fried tortillas. Eat for your health!

8. Sopa de Lima

All types of legumes are widely used in Mexican cuisine, allowing you to diversify the menu with products high in plant proteins. This is what a delicious and healthy recipe looks like vegetable soup with beans, which can be cooked not only with meat, but also in a vegetarian version.

In order to get a real one Sopa de Lima in Mexican style you need to take 400 g of pumpkin, 1 cup of fresh frozen peas, 1 cup of white beans, two onions, 1 cup of red lentils, several garlic cloves, salt, curry seasoning, vegetable oil (preferably olive), ground black pepper and any herbs .

Boil the beans soaked in water until half cooked, cut the pumpkin into cubes, and finely chop the onion and garlic. Fry the onion in oil, then add pumpkin, garlic and curry to it and continue to fry over high heat until yellow. Place washed lentils in the bowl where the beans are cooked, boil for five minutes, then add pumpkin with onions and garlic and green peas. We continue to cook over medium heat until all components of the soup are completely soft for 5 to 10 minutes, and then leave the dish covered. Sopa de Lima is ready!

Those who love a hearty and tasty meal should like the recipe for traditional Mexican soup with pork; restaurants and cafes of Mexican cuisine often offer it to their visitors. The soup recipe combines meat and vegetables in a balanced manner, so its health benefits are undeniable.

To cook, you need to prepare a can of canned corn, two kilograms of pork meat, chopped into cubes, an onion, several garlic cloves, salt and 150 g of dried pepper.

The soup is prepared like this:
Chop the pepper, removing the seeds and stems, and cook until soft. In a thick-walled pan, fry the meat in oil for several minutes, then add the onion and garlic to the pork, water to cover the food, and cook over low heat.
Pour the pepper broth into the soup, and grind the pepper itself to a puree in a blender. Add corn and pepper to the soup. If the consistency of the dish is too thick, add more water. Cook until all ingredients are ready.
Serve Sopa de Pozole with lime, chopped cabbage and tortilla chips. Eat for your health!

10. Fried nopal

Nopal- This is the symbolic plant of Mexico, depicted on its coat of arms, the most common type of cactus in this country. Fried nopal– exotic food that all fans of Mexican cuisine will be interested in trying. The cactus is useful because it helps get rid of excess fat. Preparing this dish is not too difficult.

To enjoy fried nopal you need to take a glass of water, a few garlic cloves, a teaspoon of cumin, a bouillon cube, an onion, three nopal leaves, a glass of flour, four tomatoes, a glass of vegetable oil, a little salt to taste, half a kilo of hard cheese, one piece jalapeno pepper, ground pepper and four chicken eggs.

You need to remove the hard peel from the nopal leaves with a knife, simmer the vegetables with the addition of seasonings for about 20 minutes and mix in a blender until pureed. Boil the cactus in salted water until tender (about 40 minutes), and then dip it in batter - beaten eggs with flour. Fry the nopal leaves in oil on both sides (8 minutes each). Serve this exotic dish with vegetable gravy and grated cheese. Bon appetit!

11. Chili con carne

A thick soup with meat and chili peppers, con carne, is loved by residents on the borders of Mexico. To taste it, you need to prepare the following products:

800 g beef fillet;
vegetable oil;
two heads of red onion;
allspice and black peppercorns;
two chili peppers;
several garlic cloves;
four fresh tomatoes (they can be replaced with tomato paste or canned tomatoes);
400 g red or green green beans;
spices: cumin, cloves, oregano;
cilantro;
lemon or lime;
dark chocolate;
two spoons of cocoa;
salt;
sour cream for dressing.

Cut the meat into small cubes (optionally using a food processor). Grind the spices thoroughly in a mortar. We cut the sweet pepper into small strips, and remove the seeds from the chili pepper and chop it with a knife. Pour the vegetable oil into a frying pan and put it on the fire. Fry the meat in oil until a crust appears and the water evaporates. Then put it in a deep pan with thick walls or a cauldron and simmer over low heat until soft (it’s good to add a little red wine). Fry the onion thoroughly in oil, then add vegetables and simmer everything together with seasonings.

Place in the pan with the meat stewed vegetables, beans, tomatoes or paste made from them. At the end, add lemon juice, heated chocolate and cocoa to the dish, carefully combining all the components into a homogeneous mass. When serving, season the soup with sour cream, crushed garlic and herbs. Chili con carne soup eaten with tortillas, Mexican nacho chips, boiled rice and, of course, tequila.

12. Tortillas with filling

Tortiyas - Mexican tortillas

Mexican tortillas can be prepared with any meat, vegetable and cheese fillings; there are a great many recipes for this traditional dish. We invite housewives to get acquainted with one of the options for delicious tortillas stuffed with chicken and vegetables. This wonderful snack can be made for a picnic or travel. Because it is delicious both cold and heated.

Let's prepare 200 g of chicken or turkey fillet, 150 g of sweet bell peppers and tomatoes, 100 g of cucumbers and lettuce, leeks and five Mexican tortillas.
For the sauce you will need 300 g of tomatoes, 150 g of onion, a little garlic, vegetable oil, salt, ground pepper and herbs to taste.

Let's start preparing the dish with the sauce. Finely chop the onion and garlic, tomatoes release remove the skin and cut into small pieces, finely chop the greens. Fry in vegetable oil, onion and garlic, add tomatoes to them and continue frying for about 3 minutes. Add greens to the resulting sauce and remove fire.

Finely we cut chicken fillet And fry in oil for a quarter of an hour, season with salt and pepper.
Tomatoes and cucumbers cut small pieces, leeks in rings and mix vegetables with meat, adding tomato sauce, adding salt to taste.
We spread the resulting filling onto the tortilla and wrap it on both sides. Fry the tortillas with filling on both sides in a frying dish or on the grill. Your dish is ready!

You don't have to travel far to experience the distinctive Mexican culture and taste Mexican cuisine. Food is an integral part of the national flavor; after drinking strong tequila and tasting a well-prepared dish according to a Mexican recipe, you can immerse yourself in the exotic world of this amazing and mysterious country for the European consciousness.
Recipes for Mexican cuisine, despite their unique taste, are not difficult for hardworking and skillful housewives from Russia. In Mexican restaurants, dishes are prepared by highly qualified, experienced chefs who create real miracles from ordinary products. All traditional dishes offer many options, so don’t despair if you don’t have one or another ingredient on hand. It can easily be replaced with another product. All mexican recipes are designed for the inexhaustible imagination of housewives who, having fallen in love with the national traditions of a distant country, will do everything possible to please their guests and relatives with wonderful, healthy and tasty dishes.

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